Silver_Link

Hi Jeremy, Sorry yes. I do know that signals are usually kept at caution/danger. I should have elaborated more and said that when a train approaches and if the next section is clear then the signal would be off. This is what I meant by 'normal' but I should have chosen my words better. Thanks Karl

Hi Mike, Thank you for the explanation. It makes more sense now. I suppose that because it would be a double tracked branch, no tokens would be exchanged so exchanges wouldn't be a concern. If the signalman needed to speak to the driver it would then be a case of putting the distant at caution and home at danger, which would then inform the driver of a potential issue, whereas under 'normal' conditions both would be off. I think because I have no experience of working distant semaphores (I worked for a heritage line where all distants were fixed), the actual reason of operation passed me by. Thanks again Karl

Thanks Andy. I thought that it may have been fixed to warn or caution as there may be limited visibility of the home signal on leaving the tunnel. Now that you have mentioned platform faces it's obvious. Thanks Karl

Hi all, This is going to sound like a daft question but here goes; If there is a tunnel between a signal box and a distant semaphore signal, would the distant signal be fixed? If not and it is operational how would the wiring, used to control said signal run through the tunnel? Would it be in the cess of the tunnel floor or would it run along the walls in tubing? I'm looking at NER territory, probably somewhere around the southern or lower central regions between 1900 and 1920. Many thanks again Karl

@melmoth after listening to the audio book and reading the story @Nearholmer mentioned, there are a number of mentions of the red light, two are below; "He directed a most curious look towards the red light near the tunnel’s mouth, and looked all about it, as if something were missing from it, and then looked at me. That light was part of his charge? Was it not?" And "I ran out again faster than I had run in (for I had a mortal abhorrence of the place upon me), and I looked all round the red light with my own red light, and I went up the iron ladder to the gallery atop of it, and I came down again, and ran back here." This sounds more like a signal gantry to my untrained mind. Could it be that the signal is permanently 'on' until communication from the previous box is received and the line is then cleared, as is usual practice. Thanks Karl

Hi @Nearholmer, I'm inclined to agree. The more I look at the accident I can see similarities between the 2. I also have only recently watched the adaptation, been a while since I read/listened to the story; that's tonight's job, to see where the adaptation and story differ. Thanks Karl

Hi @melmoth, Thanks for your help. I have attached a picture of the tunnel mouth, taken from IMDb for you to see. As you can see, it doesn't appear to be a signal per se, more of a static indicator. The discussion of time interval working is interesting as, and I'm certainly no expert and just guessing, could it have been intended to be a fixed stop; meaning that until the signal-man waves you through, once he has checked with the following box that the train was out of the tunnel, you do not proceed? Thanks Karl

Good afternoon all, I have some questions regarding the BBC adaptation of 'The Signalman' by Charles Dickens. As I am looking at attempting a diorama. I am believe it was shot on the SVR with a dummy box for the exterior shots and one of the lines boxes was used for the internal shots. However, my questions are; 1/ Is there a location either open or long closed, that fits this dramatised location; single line with an isolated box at one end in a cutting? There are plenty of locations, near to me, that I can think of with single line tunnels; I'm thinking of the Whitby to Scarborough line. Looking at OS maps of the late 19th and early 20th century none of the tunnels appear to have boxes before the openings and there appears to only be boxes at the stations. 2/ What was the purpose of the red light on the tunnel portal which was the charge of the Signalman? I'm assuming that it is an outdated regulation as it's not something that I've seen on any photos or noticed on the network. 3/ Surely even by the extravagant standards of the time, a single line with a box along a line with, what appears to be very light traffic, was excessive and a waste of money/resources? Many thanks in advance. Karl